The art of film has the ability to make us laugh, make us cry, make us think, make us sad, and, from time to time, has the power to completely emotionally devastate us. Some movies simply reduce us to sobbing, heaving, wrung out messes. Whether it’s the death of a dog, the (often unsatisfying) conclusion to a love story, watching a beloved character deal with a deadly illness, or any of the other storytelling tropes filmmakers use to manipulate the emotions of audiences, one thing is for sure – people always remember emotionally devastating movies, and many actually seek them out.
Why is that? Is it because misery loves company? Is it because they allow us to the catharsis of releasing pent-up emotion? Whatever the reason, movies that make audiences feel deeply (or sob as if their best friend was just ax-murdered), continue to draw audiences year after year. Just ask your favorite dog lover how many times they’ve seen Marley and Me, or your hopeless romantic friend their thoughts on P.S. I Love You. Chances are, both people will have a lot to say about the merits of each film, and will also be sure to tell you how much the movies make them cry no matter how many times they view them. These are some of the most emotionally devastating movies ever made.
6 Marley & Me
Marley & Me, the 2008 'comedy' starring Owen Wilson, Jennifer Aniston, and an adorable yellow Labrador Retriever is based on the book of the same name. Throughout the course of the film, Marley grows up, and his antics are the basis of the laughs this film gets. Like all dogs, Marley eventually grows old, and when he passes away, well, it is one of the most emotionally devastating scenes of all time –whether you’ve ever owned a dog or not. Marley & Me is also based on a true story and a real dog, making it even more emotionally devastating.
5 P.S. I Love You
P.S. I Love You is also based on a book by the same name. In it, Hilary Swank plays a recently widowed woman who receives messages from her late husband that he set up before he died. Need we say more? Get the tissues out, because this is young love ripped away before its time in all its devastating, tragic glory. Watching Swank’s character try to honor the memory of her beloved husband while rebuilding her life is gut-wrenching. Anyone who has ever lost someone they loved – whether to death or break up – will have all the feels during this movie.
4 A Star is Born (2018)
Every version of A Star is Born could make this list, but we’re going with the Lady Gaga-Bradley Cooper version simply because of its current cultural relevance. It's a bit harder to watch Bradley Cooper’s character slowly drink himself to death than it is to watch Kris Kristofferson do the same thing. After all, we’ve been watching Cooper for years, first in Alias, then Wedding Crashers, The Hangover, Silver Linings Playbook, American Hustle, and more; he's a sex symbol at this point. Combining his emotional whirlwind with Lady Gaga’s heartbreaking performance – yeah, everyone cried hard.
3 Schindler’s List
Schindler’s List is one of the most emotionally devastating and critically acclaimed films of all time, and for good reason. Naturally, Steven Spielberg’s film about Oskar Schindler, the man who saved 1,200 Jews from certain death, is viscerally emotional on many levels – the gratitude for Schindler and the people he saved, the knowledge that the atrocities represented in the film actually happened in real life, and how much farther we still have to evolve as human beings, are all reasons this film cuts so deep. Its utter artistry and cinematic beauty, even when displaying the harshest of realities, seals the deal.
2 Steel Magnolias
Steel Magnolias is based on the real-life story of the writer’s sister, and is obviously more intense because of it-- Robert Harling lost his sister Susan to complications of diabetes and wrote a staggering stage play about his experience. Herbert Ross hired a who’s who of A-list actresses for his 1989 film adaptation, which remains one of the most iconic movies about motherhood to this day. Watching Julia Roberts’ Shelby fall in love, get married, have a baby, and ultimately die because of the stresses on her body takes audiences on a roller coaster of deep emotions.
1 City of Angels
In 1998, Meg Ryan and Nicolas Cage starred in City of Angels, a sweet film about a woman who can see an actual angel. They improbably fall in love, and audiences heartstrings are pulled on when they can’t truly be together. However, Cage’s angel finds a loophole and becomes human so that he and Ryan can be together. Shortly after he becomes human, however, she goes out for a bike ride, gets hit by a truck, and dies — leading to the most emotionally devastating (not to mention incredibly manipulating) ending of a film in decades. Emotional manipulation is a dirty game; filmmakers know how to make audiences weep, but the viewer's knowledge of this can't prevent them from ultimately sobbing and being affected.